Egypt and Eritrea affirmed their keenness to continue joint coordination to confront threats in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea, in a way that supports security and stability in the region.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi received Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh in Cairo on Thursday, in the presence of Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Aati and Major General Abbas Kamel, head of Egyptian General Intelligence.
According to a statement by the Egyptian presidency, Sisi received a written message from his Eritrean counterpart, Isaias Afwerki, which included “aspiration to enhance consultation and coordination on issues of common interest.”
Sisi receives a written message from his Eritrean counterpart, Isaias Afwerki (Egyptian Presidency)Al-Sisi stressed "Egypt's keenness to push forward efforts to deepen the distinguished relations and bilateral cooperation between the two countries, in a way that benefits the two brotherly peoples and achieves their common interests, especially in light of the increasing regional challenges that require intensifying discussions on ways to address them."
The meeting, according to the statement, discussed regional situations, especially with regard to issues and threats in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea, and the two countries' "keenness to continue joint coordination and consultation at various levels, in a manner that supports security and stability in the region" was affirmed.
The visit comes amid rising tensions in the Horn of Africa, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding by the breakaway region of Somaliland with Ethiopia in January, granting the latter the right to use a 20-kilometre stretch of Somaliland for 50 years through a “lease” agreement. This was rejected by Somalia and Egypt, and prompted an emergency Arab meeting at the time that condemned the agreement and expressed solidarity with the Somali position, which considered it “null and unacceptable.”
Cairo attaches great importance to strengthening its relations with the countries of the Horn of Africa, according to Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Aati, who made his first foreign trip since assuming his position in early July, to Somalia and Djibouti, to inaugurate the first direct flight route between the three countries.
